Marine Energy Supply Chain Development for Mooring Systems

The technical net marine energy power generation potential for the United States is 2,300 TWh/year with ~95% coming from regions outside the Gulf of Mexico. 53% of this potential comes from wave energy off the coasts of California, Oregon, Hawaii, and Alaska, and an additional 4,100 TWh/year of ocean thermal energy comes from the Pacific. Unfortunately, the Gulf of Mexico is the only current large-scale supplier for all offshore needs which leaves a massive gap in the supply chain that is local to the coastal marine energy sites. For marine energy to be at cost-parity with other sources of renewable energy, this supply chain gap needs to be filled. Triton and its team are working with manufacturers along the east and west coasts near marine energy sites while also performing a design optimization study for fabrication of anchoring systems locally. This strategy will ensure ports and supporting infrastructure are developed alongside these emerging technologies to ensure local US manufacturing is capable of meeting the demand of large-scale marine energy deployments. During the Phase I scope, Triton developed an economically responsible anchor solution and deployment strategy for the marine energy industry. This would utilize these local manufacturers and ports for fabrication and a unique dynamically positioned crane barge for anchor deployment. During Phase II scope, Triton will further engage local assets on both coasts to optimize procurement and fabrication processes. Additionally, Triton will refine a practical Jones Act compliant barge to carry out wave technology anchor deployments. This engagement and process optimization with local supply chains will provide a lower cost and more adaptive solution. By targeting the most challenging wave energy converter markets, Tritonĺs supply chain overhaul and optimization will yield additional benefits across other renewable developments like wind and solar.